Starting off a morning shift after getting home at close to midnight yesterday -- no, not because I was partying ( getting too old and tired for that :P ), but because I had a 3-11pm shift. It was a pretty quiet one, but I got called away at about 9-ish to help escort a 9-year-old with bad asthma to the KK Children's A&E Dept. He was breathing at a rate of, oh, what looked like 80 breaths per minute. Pretty worrying, but we made it, whew! :)

After that, the ambulance detoured to SGH's Blood Bank to collect some packed cells for a patient here. The trip took about 45 minutes in total, and since I drive myself around almost all of the time, by the end of the journey, I was suffering from a severe case of motion sickness. Thank goodness one of the MOs on night shift took pity on me and saw a few cases on my behalf, so I basically rested till 11pm when I was cleared to go home. Thanks, Wai Yip! :D

I'm a little concerned that I'll puke during the 10-hour flight to NZ next month. I've always been a poor traveller by sea and by air. Trains, coaches and cars are okay, but now even an ambulance gives me major problems, so I have to get some meds / herbal remedies on a standby basis. Preserved ginger is popular, as is Stemetil / Sturgeron / Dramamine. I'll try a couple of these and report back after my vacation. :P

Just heard that one of our regular ER MOs is nursing a fracture and might be on MC for a week. There was apparently a last-minute scramble during Thursday's night shift as this same MO was supposed to be on but couldn't make it because of his injury. Here's wishing him a speedy recovery -- spare a thought for your fellow colleagues who are suffering without you! :P

It's been quite a change these past couple of days, after I finally took Clay's Measure Of A Man out of my car stereo after more than a month of non-stop playing that's made me lose touch completely with the outside world :D I'm blasting Josh Groban's Closer now, which is equally enjoyable. This album is really growing on me, so I hope Josh will stage a concert in Singapore really soon. Michael Buble showed up for a local show just 4 months after his CD was released after all!

Speaking of Clay, I hope he's back home with his family and friends by now. He will be the Grand Marshal at the Raleigh X'mas Parade on Nov 22, and this will be broadcast over the Internet at 10-11pm either today or tomorrow Singapore time at the link below:

WRAL TV

Another piece of good news is that Clay will graduate from the University of North Carolina ( Charlotte ) on December 20th! He's reportedly studying hard despite his hectic schedule, and all his fans are so proud that he's getting his degree. Congratulations on your momentous achievement, Clay :)

The above piece of info is also reported on the newly launched Bubel/Aiken Foundation website.
Go to the "Home" section to read more, then scroll down to the bottom, where they talk about the Able To Serve Awards being handed out in the US, as well as internationally. New Zealand, England, Ireland, and yes, Singapore, are listed for the latter category! Those eligible have to be between 5-22 years of age, with some intellectual disability, who contributes greatly to his/her community in some way. There's a 65-page PDF file that you have to look through, but some of us at Clay Aiken Singapore will condense the important bits and post them on the website ASAP.

Our thanks to the BAF for including Singapore in this wonderful campaign!

Okay then, back to work :D